Mattress and cushion construction



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Sem 1 L 1934 L.. J. oDETs MATTRESS AND CUSHION CONSTRUCTION Filed Marchll,

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MATTRESS AND CUSHION CONSTRUCTION Sept, 1T, 1934.,

Filed March 11, 1953 2 sheets-sheet 2 52975 f5 f V Patented Sept. 1l,1934 NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE This invention relates to arcles offurniture such as beds, couches, reclining chairs, etc., and the objectof the invention is to provide an improved pad construction in the formof a matil tress, seat cushion, or a back, arm, or leg rest which willgive complete rest-producing sup.- port to an occupant without causingundesirable overheating of the portions of the body supported by theimproved pad or pads.

Primarily, a supporting pad made in accordance with the principles ofthe present invention includes a iirin but resilient foundationstructure, such as a body of hair or felt or superposed layers of eachor both, and which may or l5 may not include an inner spring unit, asdesired, the foundation structure in any case being capable of yieldingunder the weight of the occupant to conform to the larger concavitiesand convexlties of the occupants gure.

superimposed on the foundation structure, according to the presentinvention, is a. pad, quilt or layer of relatively soft and highlyresilient material, such as down, feathers, or a combination of down andfeathers, or an equivalent 26 substitute therefor, which will yield, asa person assumes a posture on the pad, and thereby cause the lling ofthe facing structure to rise in all directions from the points ofapplied pressure to meet and conform to the varying con- 30 tours of thenether muscles of the occupant in any and all of the concavities aswould be found or produced in the figure reposing in any position on thepad, for example, as at the back of the neck, between the shoulders, andat the back of the knee and ankle when lying on the broad of the backupon the pad, or at the waist line and side of the neck and head whenlying on the side.

The support afforded by the pad in conform- 40 ing to the smaller aswell as the larger contours of the gure gives one a sensation as offloating and thereby produces a feeling of complete restful relaxationand by reason of the soft resilient pad being comparatively thin and byreason of its being superimposed on the relatively iirm resilientfoundation the deep sinln'ng body enveloping or smothering effect,inherent in the conventional feather mattress and which produces theobjectionable overheating of the occupant thereof, is eliminated whilethe full form support effect characteristic of feathers and down isretained.

The present invention contemplates the enclosing of the softsuperimposed layer of down and feathers in an individual confiningenvelope and the inclusion of the foundation structure and thesuperposed pad within a single covering envelope or ticking, whereby thewhole is presented in the form of a single unit which may be readilyhandled without awkwardness such as that attending the handling of theclumsy flaccid bundle presented by a conventional feather bed.

The present invention further contemplates tufting or quilting of thesuperimposed facing es structure transversely, longitudinally ordiagonally to confine predetermined quantities of the down and feathersillling respectively within areas of predetermined dimensions in orderthat the down and feathers will not shift to any perceptible extent overthe whole of the area of the finished pad structure.

The present invention further contemplates conventional tufting of theassembled pad through the superimposed facing structure and underlyingfoundation structure to tie the two and the enclosing envelope togetheragainst relative shifting between the elements.

The present invention further contemplates the provision of the facingstructure on one or so both faces of the pad; in the case of the formerto provide what may be termed a combined winter and summer pad wherebythe inherent heat-retaining qualities of the feathers and down may betaken advantage of in the Winter while permitting the mattress to beturned face for face on the bed, couch or chair to take advantage of thecooling qualities of the felt or hair side of the pad in the summertime; and in the case of the latter to permit turning of the pad,especially when in the form of a mattress, face for face on the bed atregular periods for general sanitary purposes when occasion ls requiredby conditions attending the use of the pad; or, when used as a seat orback cushion in living room or other furniture wherein the cushionsfrequently are upholstered with different materials on their oppositefaces, to permit the cushions to be turned as desired to present eitherface without loss of the restful support provided by the superposedfacing structure.

In the accompanying drawings:

. Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional elevation of a pad made inaccordance with the principles of the present invention, in the form ofbed mattress, showing a human form reposing thereon; y

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 without an occupant;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional elevation taken on the line 3-3, Fig.2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional elevation, drawn to an enlarged scale,showing a facing structure applied to each of the opposite faces of thepad;

Fig. 5 is a perspective of the facing structure showing transversequilting thereof;

Fig. 6 is a perspective Aview showing longi-` spring unit 2, as is usualin inner-spring mattresses, consists of an envelope 3, composed ofcanvas, burlap, or any other suitable material and includes a top,bottom and side walls 4, 5 and 6 respectively. Within the connes of thesaid top, bottom and side walls are longitudinal and transverselyextending rows of metallic springs 10, which are secured in place withinthe unit 2 in any conventional manner.

Completely enveloping the inner spring unit 2, in the present case, is abody of brous material such as cotton, felt, or hair indicated at 11,which may be applied to the inner spring unit 2 layer by layer or in anyother manner of assembling common in the manufacture of inner springmattresses and cushions.

Applied to one or both of the opposite faces of the pad assembly, so fardescribed, is a facing unit 15, shown in perspective in Fig. 5. Thefacing unit 15 comprises a complete envelope 16 consisting of oppositefacing sheets 1'? and 18 respectively, which. are secured togetheraround the outer edges of the facing structure 15 and in one or moredirections, at spaced intervals, intermediate the said outer edges ofthe facing structure, asby rows of stitching indicated at 19 in Fig. 5,wherein said rows of stitches 19 extend transversely of the facingstructure at spaced intervals longitudinally of the facing structure l5,whereas, in Fig. 6, the rows of quilting stitches 19 extend bothtransversely and longitudinally of the facing `structure, while in Fig.'7 the quilting stitches 19 extend diagonally in opposite directionscrossing eachI- other substantially at right angles, but in any casedividing the facing structure into a plurality of individualcompartments or pockets 20, each of which is adapted to contain apredetermined amount of soft highly resilient material such as, andpreferably consisting of, fowl plumage including a mixture of down andfeathers.

In the preferred form of the invention shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, one ofthe facing structures 15, after the same has been filled and quilted inthe desired manner, is placed directly on the layer of felt or hair 11superimposed upon the top wall 4 of the inner spring unit 2, while inFig. 4 a second facing structure 15 is placed in direct contact with thelayer of hair or felt 11 disposed against the bottom wall 5 of the innerspring unit 2. In eitherl case, the entire assembly is then enclosedwithin an outer envelope or ticking 25, whereby the inner spring unit,the surrounding filling, and the facing structure or structuressuperimposed thereon are combined into one single unit which may bereadily handled as such.

To insure against relative shifting between the filling 11 and thefacing structure or structures l5, or between any of the component partsof the pad, the complete unit may be tufted, in the usual manner asindicated in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, wherein a button or tuft 21 is applied toeach of the opposite sides of the assembled pad, outside the outerticking, and joined together by a cord or other connecting element 22extending completely through the assemblage from face to face thereof. l

As shown in Fig. 5, the compartments 20 of the facing structure 15,before assembly of the facing structure with the foundation structure l,are of a more or less elliptical cross sectional form longitudinally ofthe structure l5, but when the assembly is complete within the outercasing 25 each of the compartments 20 assumes a rectangular form withthe several compartments disposed substantially in lateral abuttingrelation to each other thereby providing a substantially flat surface onthe pad as shown in Fig. 2. This is accomplished by making the facingstructure l5 of a normal length and width greater than the length andwidth of the foundation structure 1 and by making the outer casing 25practically the same length and width as the foundation structure 1 andof a depth less than the combined normal thicknesses of the foundationstructure 1 and the facing structure l5, whereby, when the twostructures are placed within the outer casing 25, the facing structureis contracted and compressed by the outer casing 25, thereby assuming aflat form of substantially uniform thickness throughout the entiresurface of the assembled unit. The tufts 21 aid in maintaining the flatsurface on the unit by limiting movement of the oppositely disposedfacing sheets of the outer casing 25 in opposite directionsperpendicular to the assembled unit.

Upon referring to Fig. l of the drawings, it will be obvious that underconditions of use the relatively firm resilient foundation structurewith the facing structure thereon will yield under the weight of anoccupant, the foundation structure 1 conforming to the largerconcavities and convexities of the form of the occupant, while thefacing structure 15, lying intermediate the foundation structure andthe. occupant in repose thereon, conforms to each and all of the smallerconcavities of the form of the occupant, whereby complete restfulrelaxation is produced.

,While the pad forming the subject of the present invention has beenshown in the drawings as a bed mattress, it will be obvious to oneskilled in the art that the principles of the invention are equallyadaptable to all forms of seat cushions and back, ieg or arm rests, inall kinds of furniture employing such structures, especially to the typeof furniture wherein the cushions and rest pads are removable.

I claim:

A bedding unit comprising a relatively thick resilient and substantiallyrectangular foundation structure including an inner spring unitcompletely enclosed within a body of relatively firm resilient fibrousmaterial of substantially uniform thickness and density presenting aflg- 5 ure-supporting surface capable of conforming only to the largerconcavities and convexities of a figure reposing on said unit, arelatively thin soft resilient .and substantially rectangular facingstructure superposed on said figure-supporting surface and normally ofgreater length and width and lesser thickness than the foundationstructure, said facing structure normally comprising an envelope dividedinto a plurality of compartments of substantially elliptical crosssectional form respectively containing substantially equal predeterminedquantities of a fowl plumage product adapted under localized pressure inone direction to effect counter-directional movement of immediatelyadjacent areas of said facing structure and causing the facing structureto conform to the smaller concavities and convexities of said figure,and an outer casing substantially vequal in length and width to thefoundation structure and having a depth less than the combined normalthicknesses of the ,foundation and facing structures enclosing saidstructures and compressing the facing structure substantially to thelength and Width of the foundation structure and to a predetermineduniform thickness over the area of said figuresupporting surface of thefoundation structure and forming the compartments of the facingstructure into substantially rectangular cross sectional formsrespectively in substantially lateral abutting relation to each otherproviding a substantially fiat facing surface on the unit andrestricting said counter-directional movement of the areas of saidfacing structure immediately surrounding said reposing figure topractically a negligible extent, and means limiting movement of thatportion of the outer casing overlying said facing structure in adirection perpendicular to the foundation structure for maintaining saidflat surface on the unit in the areas of the facing structure remote tothe reposing figure.

LOUIS J. ODETS.

